


How to Find Someone Else's Soulmate

by eafay70



Category: Football RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Anxiety, Depression, Established Relationship, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Matchmaking, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-26
Updated: 2017-06-08
Packaged: 2018-09-27 03:47:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9955169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eafay70/pseuds/eafay70
Summary: It's the summer, and Max is spending the first part of his break in Paris with Julian. Kevin likes them - no, really! - but can't help pretending to gag when they get too lovey-dovey. So the soulmates decide that Kevin needs to find his...or, to be more accurate, they need to find Kevin's soulmate for him.





	1. Kevin Complains

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WinterSnow10](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterSnow10/gifts).



> Outlook hates me again! :(
> 
> Sequel to ["I May Not Stand Tall, But Without You I'd Fall."](http://archiveofourown.org/works/9268331/chapters/21006608) I don't know if I'll touch on the mental illness themes again, but if I do, I will update tags and put warnings in chapter notes as appropriate.

Kevin walked into Julian's living room with two large pizzas. "I can't believe you two actually eat pineapple on pizza," he informed the two men on the couch.

"I can't believe you actually eat peppers on yours," retorted Max, who then gave himself a pat on the back for scoring against Julian in FIFA.

"You know where everything is," added Julian, who then rewarded his boyfriend with a sloppy kiss.

With a sigh, Kevin walked to the kitchen. The clock on the microwave caught his attention. "How have you been playing FIFA for the past four hours?! Does pausing to kiss and make me gag really slow you down that much?!"

Julian groaned. He knew that Kevin liked "Maxler" - heck, Kevin had come up with that name! But he didn't want Kevin complaining about them, especially since Max was spending the first part of his summer vacation here in Paris. "He needs to get laid," Julian whispered to Max.

"We need to find him his soulmate!" The university student was also whispering. "Then we can gag when they're lovey-dovey!"

"Good thinking."


	2. The Candidates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max meets Julian's coworkers under unusual circumstances. Will this help the matchmaking process?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got the idea for the circumstances under which Max would need to help Julian at work by watching PSG in the Coupe de France. The match itself was boring, but the weather was an inspiration.

_Max and Julian were slow-dancing. Both were wearing tuxedos, and they couldn't stop staring at their matching rings. They couldn't hear the music until the song changed to "Seven Nation Army."_

Max sat up with a start. Julian was groggily staring at his phone, which continued to thump the familiar melody. "What's going on?" Max whispered.

With a shrug, Julian accepted the call. "Bonjour ?" He stood up and walked out of the bedroom, probably to get a better signal.

Max glanced at the clock on the bedside table, which read 3:15. He knew that the alarm would go off at 5:00 to tell Julian to get up and prepare for his workday. The plan was for Max to spend the day doing the tourist things Julian had already done over the past few months.

"Ich kann's nicht glauben." Julian sat down on the bed with a groan. "That was my boss. A pipe burst right near our storage room. We have to get everything out of the building as fast as possible."

Max blinked a few times in an attempt to understand. "So you're going to work now?"

"Afraid so." Julian was already getting dressed. "Sorry that it woke you up, babe. The boss said sorry, too - he knows you're here because I had to tell him when I couldn't do overtime."

Max thought for a moment. "Want me to come help?"

Julian stared at him in shock. "You would do that for me?"

"Yes, I'd help you in an emergency."

Julian kissed him passionately. "Let's get going, then!"

~~~~~~~~~~

Within half an hour, Julian and Max were walking to the back entrance of the St. Germain Center for the History of Linguistics. A man with slicked-back hair ran up to them. "Julian!"

"Dr. Emery, this is my boyfriend, Max. He volunteered to help. Max, this is my boss, Dr. Emery."

"It's nice to meet you," said Max.

"Je pensais qu'il serait plus grand," the boss told Julian. He then turned to Max and said in a very thick accent, "Wilkommen in Frankreich!"

"Danke!" laughed Max. "I'm afraid I read French better than I speak it."

"Not a problem." Emery switched back to English. "Ángel will direct you." He pointed to a van parked in the alley a few feet away.

"Thanks!" Julian and Max hurried to the van, where several of Julian's coworkers were busy at work. He called out, "Ángel! You in charge?"

"Yep." A skinny man with a long, oval face emerged from the building. "Kevin, Thiago, Javier, and Thiago are at the library across town. Emery snagged us a storage locker there." He blinked in confusion. "Um...is that your visiting boyfriend? I thought he'd be taller."

"So did Emery," sighed Julian. "Max, this is Ángel. He and I do basically the same job."

"Nice to meet you," said Max with a smile. "What can we do?"

"You can help load," said Ángel. "Julian, follow me back down."

~~~~~~~~~~

Everything was safely stored in the library by noon. Emery gave them the rest of the day off as a reward, and Ángel invited everyone out to lunch at a nearby restaurant. The food was excellent, and Max got along very well with Julian's coworkers, even though each and every one of them made it clear that they'd thought he'd be taller.

After lunch, Julian and Max went back home and cuddled under the Schalke blankets on the couch to watch Schalke highlights. During a commercial break, Max pecked Julian on the nose and said, "Kevin gets along well with everyone, don't you think?"

"We're a good group," affirmed Julian. "We all get along." He chuckled softly. "You're thinking matchmaking thoughts, aren't you?"

"Of course!" Max grabbed a memo pad and pen from the small table next to the couch. "Let me see how many names I remember..."

Julian leaned down slightly to read over Max's shoulder - and burst out laughing. "Those guys are no good, babe."

"What do you mean?" Max read the first name on the list. "Ángel."

"Married with an adorable daughter."

"Javier?"

"Planning to propose."

"Edinson??"

"Divorced and focusing on coparenting his adorable sons."

Max groaned. "I don't remember anyone else right now."

"Don't worry about it." Julian kissed Max on the nose as Erwin appeared on the TV. "We've got time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank you to my friend and person-I-beta, WinterSnow10, who provided the French translations in this chapter. More importantly, she introduced me to Maxler and encouraged me to write this fic. But most importantly, she is my emerald lighthouse, guiding me safely to shore. <3


	3. When Someone's Eyes Are Smiling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max discusses the various ways in which soulmates find each other with Julian's landlady. Meanwhile, Julian gets unexpected help in the quest to find Kevin's soulmate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title is meant to allude to the song "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling." I considered writing a Saint Patrick's Day fic, but this idea popped into my head first. (An actual Saint Patrick's Day fic might still happen.)

Max sat outside with his Guinness and sighed contently. It was another lovely day in Paris, and although Julian was working, Max was expecting company any minute.

"Bonjour, Max !" A smiling woman with bits of gray in her hair came walking towards him, punctual as always.

Joan du Val was Julian's landlady. She and Max had met when she had stopped by for an informal "inspection," better known as "excuse to gossip," and become fast friends.

"Bonjour, Joan !" Max kissed her cheek as she sat down. "How are you and Jean-Michel?"

"My husband, he is always baking, of course." Joan chuckled softly. "I cannot complain. How are you and your Julian? Still trying to help your friend?"

"Yes, we're still looking for his soulmate," Max confirmed. "We didn't think it'd be quite this tricky."

"You believe the old wives' tale that soulmates can spot soulmates, then?" Joan shook her head. "All lies! Jean-Michel and I met at a dinner party where the host did seating arrangements by last name...what is that word...A, then B, then C?"

"Alphabetically." Max laughed as Joan nodded. "My best friend from school, Leon, met his soulmate, Christoph, in a study group for statistics. We still don't know what possessed Leon or Christoph to take the class."

"You and Julian met online, yes?" Max nodded, blushing a little. "You youngsters and your technology. I don't understand any of it."

"It's alright," Max reassured her. "Did Julian tell you about the best friends he knows who met their soulmates on the same night?"

"One at the hors d'oeuvres and one when people were leaving, yes!" Both laughed. "You see? It's better when the soulmates meet on their own!"

"My parents met on a blind date organized by a mutual friend," pointed out Max. "That sort of thing can work. Besides, matchmaking is fun."

\-----

"Please print, Germain!" Julian rubbed the nose of the ceramic lynx sitting on the shelf next to the printer and tried to run the print job again. No luck.

"Is he still mad at us for leaving him behind?" Edinson asked in reference to the lynx. It was a truth widely acknowledged that the lynx controlled the technology in the center, which was finally back to normal after too many days crammed in the library.

"I think so." Julian sighed. "I've tried everything I can think of."

"May I try everything I can think of, then?" Edinson volunteered. The German stepped aside, and the Uruguayan began pressing buttons.

Julian looked around at his coworkers. His gaze settled in the general direction of Kevin, who appeared to look at something to the side frequently.

"You noticed, too?" Edinson's words pulled Julian back to reality.

"Um..." He turned around to face the printer, which was rebooting, then cocked his head at Edinson. "Noticed what?"

"Not what, whom: Kevin." Edinson looked ready to squeal with excitement. "He would always glance that way, but nobody ever glanced back, so he stopped doing it, but now he's doing it again!"

Julian couldn't believe his ears. "You're..."

"One of the office's two resident Cupids." Edinson grinned proudly.

"You rang?" Ángel appeared next to Edinson, seemingly out of nowhere. "We're talking about Kevin, right?"

"He teases Max and me so much that we're looking for his soulmate," said Julian. "No luck so far."

"We haven't figured out who attracts his gaze yet," confessed Ángel. "We've eliminated a lot of names, yours and ours included."

As the printer finally began printing, Julian grinned. "Let's have dinner this week to share notes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Germain the Lynx is PSG's mascot, having made his debut in 2010 for the club's 40th anniversary.


	4. Love Is Not Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max's anxiety bubbles to the surface. Julian's efforts to help lead to an analysis of his own mental health.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A comment on chapter 2 led me to realize that by not mentioning Julian's and Max's mental health, I was implying that they 'cured' each other by falling in love. This was absolutely not my intention. Love does not cure mental illness - it can help treat it, but that's it. I hope this chapter clarifies that.  
>  
> 
> **TW: discussion of past suicidal thoughts and past self-harm**

Max couldn't keep his hands from shaking. Two of Julian's coworkers were coming over for dinner so they could talk about the quest for Kevin's soulmate - and Max was terrified.

He had never been very good at meeting new people. Thousands of thoughts always plagued his mind at the prospect: What if he said the wrong thing? How was he supposed to know what the wrong thing to say was? What if they started talking about him behind his back? Was he even worth meeting and befriending?

The young man threw himself facedown onto Julian's bed and groaned. "I can't do this," he whispered as he gathered his plushies under his arms. (Yes, he had brought his plushies with him to Paris. This sort of scenario was exactly why.) "This was the worst idea of my life."

When Julian returned home a few hours later, he could hear Max's whimpers and sobs from the hallway outside the bedroom. The taller man joined his boyfriend on the bed and stroked his back softly. "I'm here, Max. Tell me everything."

"I scare everyone away," Max croaked out, barely audible. "People don't like me. I hate myself, so I don't blame them."

"Oh, Max..." Julian blinked back his own tears. "I like you. I love you."

"You'll go away, too," Max argued. "Leon said he liked me. But then he found Christoph and he didn't have time for all my anxiety. Sometimes when they were hanging out without me I would think about jumping from the fire escape. I would wonder which bone would break first. I just wanted to feel...not worried."

Julian didn't bother trying to control his crying anymore. "That's what I wanted when I cut. All I deserved was to hurt, was to be in pain."

Both men sobbed for a few minutes before Max spoke again. "I thought we were supposed to save each other from our demons."

"We do, time and again." Julian extended his arm across Max's back so they could cuddle together. "I guess we can't cure each other, though."

Max nudged his plushies against Julian's chest. "Thank you for loving me, even though I still eat four things at a time."

"Always." Julian kissed Max's nose. "Thank you for loving me, even though I set impossible standards for myself."

"Of course."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As someone with mental illness, I'm here to listen to anyone who wants to talk. <3


	5. Unexpected Success

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max and Julian are pleasantly surprised (well, "pleasantly" might be the wrong word) by Kevin's actions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To WinterSnow10. You know why, and you know what I want to say because I'm always saying it. <3 <3 <3
> 
> I had thought of including a silly chapter regarding a side pairing in this fic, but I've chosen to wrap things up instead. My life is in a complicated, mostly unpleasant place right now, so I'm saving silliness for a separate, long-overdue fic.

Julian was exhausted. He was in the middle of a big project at work, and it was sapping the life out of everyone - the boss had worn mismatched shoes the entire week, which was an obvious low point for one of the best-dressed people Julian had ever met. Furthermore, Max had run into an unexpected complication with his master's thesis, which he had spent several hours trying to resolve over the phone, so he was just as exhausted as his boyfriend.

As if things weren't stressful enough for the lovebirds, they had offered the guest room to Kevin, whose apartment building had suffered smoke damage. Kevin was far from a bad house guest, but he was clearly annoyed with his landlord's sluggish pace at resolving the situation, and the overall mood was only dampened further. It was no surprise, therefore, that Julian and Max felt the need to escape by going out to dinner and silently treasuring each other's company.

On this particular evening, roughly 48 hours until Max was due to fly back to Germany, the two Schalke fans entered Julian's living room after dinner without paying much attention to their surroundings. "Sleep," the shorter man mumbled, tugging at the older man's arm. "Sofa."

"Taken," a voice insisted.

"My sofa," argued Julian, yawning loudly. "Dibs."

"Taken," the voice repeated. The lights suddenly flicked on, and the voice said, "Why are you back so early?"

Max yelped and buried his head in Julian's chest. "My eyes!"

Julian moaned loudly. "My best friend...and my team leader...on my sofa..."

Kevin - the best friend in question - snorted. "Really, Messrs. Matchmakers? You're not happy that I've actually found my soulmate?"

Thiago Silva - the team leader in question - chuckled. "I think they're disappointed that they didn't figure it out before we did, _meu amor,_ and let the record show that I suggested my apartment because I didn't want to risk being interrupted."

Julian sat on a nearby chair, and Max sat on his lap. The older man asked, "How did you figure it out? You barely interact."

"I noticed that Kevin kept looking in my direction, even when I was the only one sitting there," the Brazilian explained. "So during lunch today, I rubbed Germain's head for good luck and asked Kevin if he'd like to go out with me. He said yes."

"And you two weren't supposed to be back for another hour," Kevin added.

"We didn't want dessert," said Max. "Besides, if we'd come back later, you'd be doing much, much more than sticking your tongues down each other's throats."

Julian sighed. "Well, Max and I are off to bed. Congrats on finding each other...Thiavin."

Max snorted. "Keviago."

"Good night," said Thiago. "You can think of a portmanteau name when you're less tired."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you've enjoyed this fic. =D

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback and suggestions are always appreciated. <3


End file.
